SUPERSUB CHE HAS FINAL SAY
Two-goal Adams’ attitude puts rival Fofana to shame
CHE ADAMS showed Wesley Fofana it’s possible to have your head turned and still keep your mind on the job.
Southampton striker Adams – a target for both Everton and Leeds – came off the bench to score twice and nourish his club with their first win of the season and first on the road since February.
He would have gorged on a hattrick had his whipped shot not struck the post in injury time, but his appetite for the job was in stark contrast to that of Leicester defender Fofana.
Chelsea have made two offers for the £60million-rated Frenchman, which was enough for him to be left out by manager Brendan Rodgers, who claimed Fofana’s mind was elsewhere.
So, while the Foxes threw away the lead given to them by James Maddison (below), Fofana sat in the stands, merrily posing for selfies and signing shirts as his team dropped into the relegation zone.
Leicester-born Adams had not scored for his club since that Saints hot streak in February but the Scotland marksman was the difference here and earned the praise of his boss Ralph Hasenhuttl.
Having carried a groin injury in the week, he was not considered fit enough to start but Hasenhuttl said: “He did a very good job in his last game and he showed a fantastic reaction when he came on.
“But I don’t want to reduce my praise just to Che. The whole team simply didn’t accept that we couldn’t get something here after they had scored a beautiful goal.
“We had a very young team but we fought really hard and it was a very solid performance.”
With an average age
of just 23,
Saints’ saplings were the youngest Premier League team selected since 2017 but they refused to bend.
When Maddison’s clever free-kick deceived keeper Gavin Bazunu in the 54th minute it appeared the Foxes might be the ones to chalk up their first win of the campaign.
Instead, Armel Bella-kotchap’s lay-off enabled Adams to steer home the equaliser nine minutes after coming on in the 59th minute.
His second – a superb scissorkick volley from James Wardprowse’s pinpoint cross – was even better and deserved for Saints’ bold intentions.
Rodgers is frustrated by the effects of Chelsea’s interest in Fofana but admitted: “He was not in the right frame of mind.
“There is a lot going on behind the scenes.
“He’s a good kid but this is a difficult moment for him and you can’t afford someone not being fully focused.”
The Foxes boss was equally nonplussed by Leicester’s inability to build on a dominant first half and the platform of Maddison’s goal, saying: “We handed the momentum to them because we stopped doing what we’d been good at.”
LEICESTER: Ward 7; Castagne 6, Evans 7, Amartey 6, Justin 6; Dewsbury-hall 6, Ndidi 6; Perez 5 (Tielemans (65) 6), Maddison 7,B arnes 6
(Iheanacho (76) 6); Vardy 5 (Daka (65) 6)
SOUTHAMPTON: Bazunu 5; Walker-peters
7, Salisu 6, Bella-kotchap 7; Elyounoussi 7, Ward-prowse 7, Lavia 6, Djenepo 6;
Aribo 6 (Lyanco (88) 6); A Armstrong 6
(S Armstrong (70) 6), Mara 6 (Adams
(59) 8)
STAR MAN: